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Malaysia has banned mobile phones and handheld
computers in high-security areas of government offices to prevent
spying, a report said Monday.
Chief Security Officer Johari Jamaluddin said no breaches had yet
been detected but the prevalence of electronic devices raised fears
of information leaks, the Star daily said.
"We had never felt the need to come up with such a ban before
because the use of camera handphones and other electronic devices
was not rampant," Johari was quoted as saying.
"Now, everyone seems to have them," he said. "It is a
bit inconvenient but for the sake of the country's security,
everyone has to play their role."
The government has also introduced electronic jamming devices in
"information security zones" where official matters are
discussed, the daily said.
It said the ban was introduced after a warning from the government's
chief secretary, Mohamed Sidek Hassan, to government departments,
agencies, state secretaries and local councils.
Sidek said in a recent circular that phones and personal digital
assistants (PDAs) could be used for spying and threatened "the
country's economy, national security functions and the image of the
government."
"As everybody knows, these handphones and communication devices
have become necessary items for people working in all government
agencies," he was quoted as saying in the circular.
"The widespread use of these devices, especially handphones
with camera facilities, has serious implications on security,"
he said.
"These devices can be abused to gather or even transmit
information in any form, including unauthorised data or digital
images."
-- AFP
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